AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Ben Givens has certainly lived up to his reputation as somebody who doesn’t like interviews or the spotlight in general. He’s one of the biggest names in the sport, and unlike so many others with just a fraction of his fame, he ducks the limelight. It’s an interesting facet to a personality I find absolutely magnetic. A personality I’m drawn to.
“Well, thanks for sitting down with me,” I say as we wrap up. “My piece should be out in the next day or so?—”
“No offense, but I probably won’t read it,” he says. “I’m not big on reading my own press clippings. I hope you understand.”
“Yeah. Sure.”
My eyes linger on him as he walks out of the press room and only then does my heart begin to slow its beat. When the door closes, a breath bursts from my lungs as if I’ve been underwater and holding it in for the last hour and a half. Maybe I have. Sharp, electric tingles race across my skin and my mouth is dry—likely because all the moisture in my body has pooled in my panties.
I get to my feet and quickly gather my things and stuff them all into my bag, determining that I need to get home to clean myself up before heading back to the office. Clearly, if I'm going to have any more one-on-ones with Ben Givens, I'm going to need to start packing a change of clothes. I head out of the press room shaking my head.
“This is going to be a long season,” I mutter.
3
BEN
After sitting with Bailey yesterday, I went back to practice but couldn’t get her off my mind.
Then I spent the entire night thinking about her. It was maddening. I’ve never had that kind of reaction to a woman before. Any woman. And being a pro athlete, I’m usually surrounded by some of the most beautiful women on the planet when I go out. That’s why I don’t usually go out. I figure there will be time for that later, but right now, I want to focus on my craft and being the best player I can be. Right now, I just want to focus on my game. On my legacy.
When I hit the locker room this morning, I thought I had my head back on straight. I hit the weight room and got a workout in, then did some running. By the time I hit the practice gym floor, I’m locked in. Focused. I start with some free throws before moving to mid-range jumpers.
Moving back again to start shooting from beyond the arc, I drain the first half dozen I shoot. Grabbing another ball, I start to set up when I see Bailey walking along the sideline talking to Graham, the PR guy. Turning away, I put up another shot and grimace when it hits the heel of the rim with a sharp clang.
“Damn,” I mutter.
I put up another shot from behind the arc and, again, clang it off the rim. My third shot is an airball that gets Eric and his boys laughing and talking shit from the other side of the court.
“Goddammit,” I say.
I cut another glance at Bailey and see her quickly turn away, her face reddening, looking as if I’ve caught her with her hand in the cookie jar. Growling to myself for missing my shots in front of her like a fucking chump, I grab another ball from the rack, but Gabe's deep laughter stops me from hoisting it up. And for that, I'm grateful. I don't like looking like an idiot in front of Bailey.
“What in the hell was that?” Gabe asks with a laugh as he steps over to me. “You wouldn’t have hit water if you fell out of a fuckin’ boat, man.”
“Had something in my eye.”
He chuckles and follows my gaze. “Yeah, I can see what you had in your eye.”
“It’s not like that.”
“No? Then what’s it like?”
My eyes move of their own accord, drifting over to Bailey again. Dressed in a pair of blue slacks and a white blouse that hugs the curve of her hips and the generous swell of her breasts, I feel that familiar tightening in my groin again and have to physically force myself to look away. It’s not very easy to hide an erection in a pair of shorts.
“Come on, run some inside-out drills with me,” I tell Gabe.
“I want to hear more about you and that chick,” he replies, still grinning. “You were with her a long time yesterday.”
“She’s a beat reporter the PR department made me sit down with. Nothing to tell.”
"Uh-huh. That why you're gawkin’ at her like a lovesick schoolboy?”
“You’re seeing shit.”
“Yeah, I’m seeing you gawk at her like a lovesick schoolboy and shit.”
I laugh and shake my head. “Come on. Let’s run some drills and forget about this?—”
